Have any of you guys consulted a nutritionist or dietician?
09-10-14, 04:00 PM
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She also insists she is not an expert but I look at that info as valuable :-)...she is also veggie which may make menu choices tougher, but not as tough as vegan would be (not saying anybody here is either).
the wellness coach I had through BCBS said my progress so far is astounding so maybe my experience and what has worked for me would only work for me :-).
the wellness coach I had through BCBS said my progress so far is astounding so maybe my experience and what has worked for me would only work for me :-).
09-10-14, 04:03 PM
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FYI, your bike computer is way off. You'll burn about 25-40 calories per mile depending on how hard you ride. Strava actually does a pretty decent job of estimating calories IME. I have a powermeter and use the Kj number myself which is even better.
09-10-14, 06:11 PM
#28
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As I said, I didn't think it was accurate. I don't count calories, but I would be extremely surprised if I ate that much before a ride. I mainly use my cycle computer for the trip and odometer
09-10-14, 06:19 PM
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A question: Have any of you guys consulted a nutritionist or dietician?
Here's why I ask.
Over the course of this year (basically Feb to now) I've lost almost 30 pounds through the usual combo of exercise and diet. Exercise = three to four commutes per week (12 miles in the morning, 12 in the evening - sometimes I'll stretch the evening ride) and the somewhat loosely defined and scheduled weekend ride - 10-40 miles depending. Diet = monitoring intake through MyFitnessPal.
So I've gotten to this point (and have been here before) where I'm neither losing or gaining appreciable weight. Basically I'm plateaued, and would like to lose more (another 10-15 pounds) by then end of the year. Year to date I've got just over 2,000 miles in my legs.
Here's where I need help. I feel like I'm hungry all the time (particularly on days I commute). My current MFP setting is 2,070 calories per day. On commute days, I burn a conservatively estimated (based on my HRM data) 1,200 cals (my rides are not lazy affairs for the most part. Most mornings I'll push hard, averaging 16-17 mph. Depending on the morning's efforts I'll ride at tempo or even recovery pace on the way home). I only "eat back" a portion of those calories, generally around 400 or so.
Last week, on the way home, I bonked. Well, maybe not bonked, but I had a moment where I was just spent. I pedaled easy, gathered myself and eventually settled into a tempo and made it home.
I've felt it before, but it was on a century ride. This was a commute.
It's got me quite flummoxed. This week I've changed up a little, and on Monday I had an apple late in the day before my ride home, and I felt fine.
But I have a nagging feeling that I'm just not getting my diet/nutrition right. And I'm wondering if an expert could help? Or am I making too much of this?
Any thoughts/opinions/suggestions/experiences? Thanks!
Here's why I ask.
Over the course of this year (basically Feb to now) I've lost almost 30 pounds through the usual combo of exercise and diet. Exercise = three to four commutes per week (12 miles in the morning, 12 in the evening - sometimes I'll stretch the evening ride) and the somewhat loosely defined and scheduled weekend ride - 10-40 miles depending. Diet = monitoring intake through MyFitnessPal.
So I've gotten to this point (and have been here before) where I'm neither losing or gaining appreciable weight. Basically I'm plateaued, and would like to lose more (another 10-15 pounds) by then end of the year. Year to date I've got just over 2,000 miles in my legs.
Here's where I need help. I feel like I'm hungry all the time (particularly on days I commute). My current MFP setting is 2,070 calories per day. On commute days, I burn a conservatively estimated (based on my HRM data) 1,200 cals (my rides are not lazy affairs for the most part. Most mornings I'll push hard, averaging 16-17 mph. Depending on the morning's efforts I'll ride at tempo or even recovery pace on the way home). I only "eat back" a portion of those calories, generally around 400 or so.
Last week, on the way home, I bonked. Well, maybe not bonked, but I had a moment where I was just spent. I pedaled easy, gathered myself and eventually settled into a tempo and made it home.
I've felt it before, but it was on a century ride. This was a commute.
It's got me quite flummoxed. This week I've changed up a little, and on Monday I had an apple late in the day before my ride home, and I felt fine.
But I have a nagging feeling that I'm just not getting my diet/nutrition right. And I'm wondering if an expert could help? Or am I making too much of this?
Any thoughts/opinions/suggestions/experiences? Thanks!
09-10-14, 08:08 PM
#30
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I've got a desk job as well, so yes, sedentary here as well. I think I'm going to spend some time in MFP and make sure things are set where I think they need to be, and go from there. I also think you're right about switching things up a bit. Earlier this year I was lifting three days a week, but I set that aside when the weather turned good and I wanted to ride as much as possible, so I'm going to get back to that as fall starts to arrive more and more.
I do think you guys are right ... it's time to kind of level set and re-evaluate things. And I'm starting to thing that yeah, maybe I've not been eating enough. Not that I think I need lots more ... but maybe some well-placed, healthy snacks would be a good step.
Lastly I think I need to adjust my expectations a little, particularly when it comes to improving performance versus losing weight.
I'm probably in the best shape I've ever been since high school, and that's nothing to sniff at.
Thanks for all the good insight today folks ... it's really appreciated
I do think you guys are right ... it's time to kind of level set and re-evaluate things. And I'm starting to thing that yeah, maybe I've not been eating enough. Not that I think I need lots more ... but maybe some well-placed, healthy snacks would be a good step.
Lastly I think I need to adjust my expectations a little, particularly when it comes to improving performance versus losing weight.
I'm probably in the best shape I've ever been since high school, and that's nothing to sniff at.
Thanks for all the good insight today folks ... it's really appreciated
09-10-14, 08:13 PM
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The key to not being hungry in a desk job is to get up and move around. For some reason sitting brings on food cravings. I'm sure there is science out there explaining why this is so. One reason I've started dropping weight is because my job evolved to the point where I now get just enough exercise throughout the day that I no longer think about the candy machine.
09-11-14, 06:58 AM
#32
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What is your height ?MFP has me at 2040 and I am 230 lbs and 5'8", and set at -2 per week. Exercise goals do not seem to change the calorie goal, and I have it set to "Active".1% of your weight as a weekly loss is not a crazy goal by any means.One lady I know who races time trials eats back 400 cals for every hour of training or racing, She trains at 19mph on a road bike and races at 24-25 on a time trial bike, so her wattage output is surely more than mine.
09-11-14, 06:59 AM
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The key to not being hungry in a desk job is to get up and move around. For some reason sitting brings on food cravings. I'm sure there is science out there explaining why this is so. One reason I've started dropping weight is because my job evolved to the point where I now get just enough exercise throughout the day that I no longer think about the candy machine.
09-11-14, 07:03 AM
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At the end of the day, the math of calories in and calories out works pretty well, WITHIN A MANAGEABLE RANGE
If your body needs 2000 calories a day, to lose 1lb a week you need to cut 3500 calories a week. So 2000 x 7 = 14000 for the week. Subtract, 14000 - 3500 = 10500 for the week. 10500/7 = 1500 a day.
You have to add back your calories burnt for exercise.
For me personally 1500 a day, or losing 1lb a week is pushing the envelope to where my metabolism starts slowing down, I lose energy, depression and stop losing weight, so the above formula stops working.
For example, you can't try and save 7,000 calories a week and expect to lose 2 lbs every week, your body will start protecting itself by slowing your metabolism way down and store fat.
Here is a great linky, explaining this much better than I can.
https://www.fitwatch.com/weight-loss/...wrong-237.html
If your body needs 2000 calories a day, to lose 1lb a week you need to cut 3500 calories a week. So 2000 x 7 = 14000 for the week. Subtract, 14000 - 3500 = 10500 for the week. 10500/7 = 1500 a day.
You have to add back your calories burnt for exercise.
For me personally 1500 a day, or losing 1lb a week is pushing the envelope to where my metabolism starts slowing down, I lose energy, depression and stop losing weight, so the above formula stops working.
For example, you can't try and save 7,000 calories a week and expect to lose 2 lbs every week, your body will start protecting itself by slowing your metabolism way down and store fat.
Here is a great linky, explaining this much better than I can.
https://www.fitwatch.com/weight-loss/...wrong-237.html
Last edited by ColnagoC40; 09-11-14 at 07:24 AM.
09-11-14, 08:21 AM
#35
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As far as asking a nutritionist or dietician; my experience has been that often their advice has been suspect. It started while I was in HS and worked in a large 205 bed nursing home kitchen. Our dietician would have to give us training about nutrition and her advice although based on here very recent education was not correct then or now when it pertained to what endurance athletes needed. Years later while sitting in a class aimed at diabetics and pre-diabetics the information provided about diet and nutrition also did not agree with what I had read on the subject. Besides that what I have been doing as far as diet and exercise and I submit exercise is the more important of the two has as my Dr. tells me cured my diabetes. Exercise for better health, diet for weight loss, actually calorie tracking more than a crash diet.
Went to 2 different ones when my son was depressed and put on weight staggeringly fast.
Only thing that agreed with current information was that the size of a portion of meat was about the size of a pack of cards...
09-11-14, 09:24 AM
#36
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This is partly due to my desire for better CX results and partly due to @IBOHUNT and the inspiration he gives me.
Now go get on the top of the box, it's a good view the first time...
09-11-14, 09:42 AM
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At the end of the day, the math of calories in and calories out works pretty well, WITHIN A MANAGEABLE RANGE
If your body needs 2000 calories a day, to lose 1lb a week you need to cut 3500 calories a week. So 2000 x 7 = 14000 for the week. Subtract, 14000 - 3500 = 10500 for the week. 10500/7 = 1500 a day.
You have to add back your calories burnt for exercise.
For me personally 1500 a day, or losing 1lb a week is pushing the envelope to where my metabolism starts slowing down, I lose energy, depression and stop losing weight, so the above formula stops working.
For example, you can't try and save 7,000 calories a week and expect to lose 2 lbs every week, your body will start protecting itself by slowing your metabolism way down and store fat.
Here is a great linky, explaining this much better than I can.
3500 Calories To Lose A Pound ? Is This Formula All Wrong? | FitWatch
If your body needs 2000 calories a day, to lose 1lb a week you need to cut 3500 calories a week. So 2000 x 7 = 14000 for the week. Subtract, 14000 - 3500 = 10500 for the week. 10500/7 = 1500 a day.
You have to add back your calories burnt for exercise.
For me personally 1500 a day, or losing 1lb a week is pushing the envelope to where my metabolism starts slowing down, I lose energy, depression and stop losing weight, so the above formula stops working.
For example, you can't try and save 7,000 calories a week and expect to lose 2 lbs every week, your body will start protecting itself by slowing your metabolism way down and store fat.
Here is a great linky, explaining this much better than I can.
3500 Calories To Lose A Pound ? Is This Formula All Wrong? | FitWatch
Every human body is different to some degree no doubt.
Bill
09-11-14, 11:39 AM
#38
Senior Member
I am in a similar position as you, but complicated by some other issues. I was 267 pounds on February 22 of this year and I am 197 pounds now. I did speak to a nutritionist before I started, and what she recommended for me was a slightly elevated protein/low carb diet. I input her goals into MFP and have worked at maintaining a net of 1500-1700 calories per day. I am generally shooting for about 25% protein, 35% fat, and 40% carbs on any given day. Early this year, I was doing 3-4 hr long training rides Saturday mornings, so on Thursday and Friday, I would bump the carb percentage up to around 45-50%. I am still seeing slow gains in my performance on the bike, but it definitely is not easy to lose weight and see improvement at the same time.
The one thing that I do notice is that I don't recover as rapidly from intense workouts due to the restricted calorie levels. If I do a really intense interval workout one night, it is much harder to work very hard the next day. Also, on longer rides, I need to start fueling sooner than I would have in the past, because I am not starting with the same level of reserves as I would in the past. Another thing that I am dealing with is anemia that is most likely related to a medicine I am on for my MS. While my hemoglobin is right at the bottom end of normal, my hematocrit is currently 37, which is well below the normal range of 42-48. I think it is likely that it is a combination of the MS medicine impacting my bone marrow as well as the low calorie diet and continued intense exercise levels multiple times per week. So I have backed off a bit over the last 3-4 weeks, aiming for closer to 1800-2000 calories/day and doing maybe 2 workouts in addition to my long rides on the weekend instead of 3-4/week.
In the end, I would say two things...first, listen to your body. It will tell you if you are going too hard or need to ease up a bit. And second, don't be afraid of bonking. There can be a whole lot of different causes for that feeling that may have little or no relation to your diet. It can be a stronger headwind, being dehydrated, or maybe you body is fighting off getting sick. It may also be that you just need to eat something carb rich an hour or so before you get on the bike. I have actually found that I ride my best on days when I have something with more protein in it about 90 minutes before I ride. You never really know what causes it, but it isn't the end of the world when it happens. Just slow up, and take it easy the rest of the ride if that is what it takes.
One of my old spinning instructors used to have two mantras when it came to deciding how hard you should be riding. Even though I don't ride with him anymore, his sayings have really stuck with me over the years. He would define "endurance" this way: If you don't want to quit, then you aren't enduring anything...so if you are working on "endurance" efforts, turn up the resistance until you want to quit, then endure it for as long as you can. And his feelings on failure were: Don't be afraid to fail, be afraid to quit. It is only when you reach the point of failure that you learn what you are capable of. If you only go until you quit, then you have only learned what you are willing to do, not what you are capable of.
The one thing that I do notice is that I don't recover as rapidly from intense workouts due to the restricted calorie levels. If I do a really intense interval workout one night, it is much harder to work very hard the next day. Also, on longer rides, I need to start fueling sooner than I would have in the past, because I am not starting with the same level of reserves as I would in the past. Another thing that I am dealing with is anemia that is most likely related to a medicine I am on for my MS. While my hemoglobin is right at the bottom end of normal, my hematocrit is currently 37, which is well below the normal range of 42-48. I think it is likely that it is a combination of the MS medicine impacting my bone marrow as well as the low calorie diet and continued intense exercise levels multiple times per week. So I have backed off a bit over the last 3-4 weeks, aiming for closer to 1800-2000 calories/day and doing maybe 2 workouts in addition to my long rides on the weekend instead of 3-4/week.
In the end, I would say two things...first, listen to your body. It will tell you if you are going too hard or need to ease up a bit. And second, don't be afraid of bonking. There can be a whole lot of different causes for that feeling that may have little or no relation to your diet. It can be a stronger headwind, being dehydrated, or maybe you body is fighting off getting sick. It may also be that you just need to eat something carb rich an hour or so before you get on the bike. I have actually found that I ride my best on days when I have something with more protein in it about 90 minutes before I ride. You never really know what causes it, but it isn't the end of the world when it happens. Just slow up, and take it easy the rest of the ride if that is what it takes.
One of my old spinning instructors used to have two mantras when it came to deciding how hard you should be riding. Even though I don't ride with him anymore, his sayings have really stuck with me over the years. He would define "endurance" this way: If you don't want to quit, then you aren't enduring anything...so if you are working on "endurance" efforts, turn up the resistance until you want to quit, then endure it for as long as you can. And his feelings on failure were: Don't be afraid to fail, be afraid to quit. It is only when you reach the point of failure that you learn what you are capable of. If you only go until you quit, then you have only learned what you are willing to do, not what you are capable of.
09-11-14, 12:10 PM
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I am in a similar position as you, but complicated by some other issues. I was 267 pounds on February 22 of this year and I am 197 pounds now. I did speak to a nutritionist before I started, and what she recommended for me was a slightly elevated protein/low carb diet. I input her goals into MFP and have worked at maintaining a net of 1500-1700 calories per day. I am generally shooting for about 25% protein, 35% fat, and 40% carbs on any given day. Early this year, I was doing 3-4 hr long training rides Saturday mornings, so on Thursday and Friday, I would bump the carb percentage up to around 45-50%. I am still seeing slow gains in my performance on the bike, but it definitely is not easy to lose weight and see improvement at the same time.
The one thing that I do notice is that I don't recover as rapidly from intense workouts due to the restricted calorie levels. If I do a really intense interval workout one night, it is much harder to work very hard the next day. Also, on longer rides, I need to start fueling sooner than I would have in the past, because I am not starting with the same level of reserves as I would in the past. Another thing that I am dealing with is anemia that is most likely related to a medicine I am on for my MS. While my hemoglobin is right at the bottom end of normal, my hematocrit is currently 37, which is well below the normal range of 42-48. I think it is likely that it is a combination of the MS medicine impacting my bone marrow as well as the low calorie diet and continued intense exercise levels multiple times per week. So I have backed off a bit over the last 3-4 weeks, aiming for closer to 1800-2000 calories/day and doing maybe 2 workouts in addition to my long rides on the weekend instead of 3-4/week.
In the end, I would say two things...first, listen to your body. It will tell you if you are going too hard or need to ease up a bit. And second, don't be afraid of bonking. There can be a whole lot of different causes for that feeling that may have little or no relation to your diet. It can be a stronger headwind, being dehydrated, or maybe you body is fighting off getting sick. It may also be that you just need to eat something carb rich an hour or so before you get on the bike. I have actually found that I ride my best on days when I have something with more protein in it about 90 minutes before I ride. You never really know what causes it, but it isn't the end of the world when it happens. Just slow up, and take it easy the rest of the ride if that is what it takes.
One of my old spinning instructors used to have two mantras when it came to deciding how hard you should be riding. Even though I don't ride with him anymore, his sayings have really stuck with me over the years. He would define "endurance" this way: If you don't want to quit, then you aren't enduring anything...so if you are working on "endurance" efforts, turn up the resistance until you want to quit, then endure it for as long as you can. And his feelings on failure were: Don't be afraid to fail, be afraid to quit. It is only when you reach the point of failure that you learn what you are capable of. If you only go until you quit, then you have only learned what you are willing to do, not what you are capable of.
The one thing that I do notice is that I don't recover as rapidly from intense workouts due to the restricted calorie levels. If I do a really intense interval workout one night, it is much harder to work very hard the next day. Also, on longer rides, I need to start fueling sooner than I would have in the past, because I am not starting with the same level of reserves as I would in the past. Another thing that I am dealing with is anemia that is most likely related to a medicine I am on for my MS. While my hemoglobin is right at the bottom end of normal, my hematocrit is currently 37, which is well below the normal range of 42-48. I think it is likely that it is a combination of the MS medicine impacting my bone marrow as well as the low calorie diet and continued intense exercise levels multiple times per week. So I have backed off a bit over the last 3-4 weeks, aiming for closer to 1800-2000 calories/day and doing maybe 2 workouts in addition to my long rides on the weekend instead of 3-4/week.
In the end, I would say two things...first, listen to your body. It will tell you if you are going too hard or need to ease up a bit. And second, don't be afraid of bonking. There can be a whole lot of different causes for that feeling that may have little or no relation to your diet. It can be a stronger headwind, being dehydrated, or maybe you body is fighting off getting sick. It may also be that you just need to eat something carb rich an hour or so before you get on the bike. I have actually found that I ride my best on days when I have something with more protein in it about 90 minutes before I ride. You never really know what causes it, but it isn't the end of the world when it happens. Just slow up, and take it easy the rest of the ride if that is what it takes.
One of my old spinning instructors used to have two mantras when it came to deciding how hard you should be riding. Even though I don't ride with him anymore, his sayings have really stuck with me over the years. He would define "endurance" this way: If you don't want to quit, then you aren't enduring anything...so if you are working on "endurance" efforts, turn up the resistance until you want to quit, then endure it for as long as you can. And his feelings on failure were: Don't be afraid to fail, be afraid to quit. It is only when you reach the point of failure that you learn what you are capable of. If you only go until you quit, then you have only learned what you are willing to do, not what you are capable of.
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09-11-14, 01:20 PM
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yes, I have. my situation is different and my nutritionist is knowledgeable on nutrition for exercise and knows that what I need now is very different than when I was at maximum effort a few yrs ago. knowledge is power, so you might get something from a few conversations over the next couple of months.
